Shoshana Bean to Perform at A.R.T. Gala in May

Broadway star and recording artist Shoshana Bean (Waitress, Wicked, and Mr. Saturday Night) will perform at American Repertory Theater's 2023 Gala. The annual event will be held this year on Monday, May 8 at the Bright-Landry Hockey Center on N. Harvard Street in Allston. It will honor departing Harvard University President Lawrence S. Bacow and Adele Fleet Bacow for their inspiring impact on the arts at Harvard and beyond.

Shoshana Bean was most recently seen starring opposite Billy Crystal on Broadway in Mr. Saturday Night. Tony and Grammy nominated for her role as Susan Young, she has previously starred on Broadway as Elphaba in Wicked and Jenna in Waitress. Her six independent studio albums and EPs have landed her on top of the iTunes and Billboard charts, including the peak position of #1 on the Billboard Jazz Chart. She has sold out concerts around the globe and lent her voice to countless films and television shows, a few of which include Sing, Sing 2, Enchanted, Jersey Boys, "Glee", and "Galavant". Shoshana made her Broadway debut in the original cast of Hairspray, appeared Off-Broadway in the 2000 revival of Godspell, and in Songs for a New World at City Center Encores. She won an IRNE Award for her performance as Fanny Brice in Funny Girl at North Shore Music Theater and earned a Jeff Award nomination for her portrayal of CeeCee Bloom in the pre-Broadway musical production of Beaches. She has appeared in "Bloodline" and Bill and Ted Face the Music, and recently filmed a solo concert special for PBS.

The annual Gala supports A.R.T.'s artistic productions and educational offerings, which center the theater's mission and vision of expanding the boundaries of theater through programs that engage our hearts, minds, and bodies to imagine collective pathways forward. The 2023 Gala celebrates President Bacow and Adele Fleet Bacow and Adele along with A.R.T.'s commitment to the research and development of groundbreaking theatrical experiences that catalyze dialogue and transformation.

The A.R.T.'s 2023 Gala Co-chairs are David E. & Stacey L. Goel and Linda Hammett Ory & Andrew Ory. The Gala Committee includes Ed & Sarah Baker, Terrie & Bradley Bloom, Katie & Paul Buttenweiser, Priscilla H. Douglas, Ann & Graham Gund, Barbara & Amos Hostetter, Jeaennie & Jonathan Lavine, Bill & Leslie Lee, Katherine & Joseph J. O'Donnell, Diane & Deval Patrick, and Penny Pritzker & Bryan Traubert.

The gala will begin with a cocktail hour at 6PM, followed by dinner, a live auction, and an artistic program. Additional performers will be announced at a later date.

Half and full table packages starting at $7,500, individual tickets starting at $1,500, and opportunities to support the event-including for individuals unable to attend-are available now at AmericanRepertoryTheater.org/Gala.

For additional information, please contact A.R.T.'s Development team at ART_Events@harvard.edu.

ABOUT Shoshana Bean

Shoshana Bean was most recently seen starring opposite Billy Crystal in Broadway's Mr. Saturday Night. Tony and Grammy nominated for her role as Susan Young, she has previously starred on Broadway as Elphaba in Wicked and Jenna in Waitress. Her six independent studio albums and EPs have landed her on top of the iTunes and Billboard charts, including the peak position of #1 on the Billboard Jazz Chart. She has sold out concerts around the globe and lent her voice to countless films and television shows, a few of which include Sing, Sing 2, Enchanted, Jersey Boys, "Glee", and "Galavant". Shoshana made her Broadway debut in the original cast of Hairspray, appeared Off-Broadway in the 2000 revival of Godspell, and in Songs for a New World at City Center Encores. She won an IRNE Award for her performance as Fanny Brice in Funny Girl at North Shore Music Theater and earned a Jeff Award nomination for her portrayal of CeeCee Bloom in the pre-Broadway musical production of Beaches. She has appeared in "Bloodline" and Bill and Ted Face the Music, and recently filmed a solo concert special for PBS.

ABOUT LAWRENCE S. BACOW & ADELE FLEET BACOW

Lawrence S. Bacow is the 29th President of Harvard University.

Widely regarded as one of the nation's pre-eminent higher education leaders, President Bacow has devoted his tenure to advancing Harvard's academic mission and to encouraging interdisciplinary efforts to tackle complex global challenges such as the climate crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic. He is a passionate advocate for the free exchange of ideas, for the interests of international students and scholars, and for the promise of a more equitable, diverse, and inclusive University that considers its future in the context of its past. Under his leadership, the Allston campus has changed and grown in important ways, including steps to bring the American Repertory Theater to the neighborhood.

From 2001 to 2011, President Bacow served as president of Tufts University following 24 years on the faculty of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he held the Lee and Geraldine Martin Professorship of Environmental Studies and served as Chair of the Faculty (1995-97) and as Chancellor (1998-2001). He received an S.B. in economics from MIT, a J.D. from Harvard Law School, an M.P.P. from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and a Ph.D. in public policy from the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Prior to his election to the Harvard presidency in February 2018, he served as a member of the Harvard Corporation (2011-18), a Hauser Leader-in-Residence at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government (2014-18), and a President-in-Residence at the Harvard Graduate School of Education (2011-14).

Adele Fleet Bacow is the President and Founder of Community Partners Consultants.

As President of Community Partners Consultants, Adele Fleet Bacow offered extensive expertise in community cultural development, urban planning, economic development, design, and the arts. She brought the public and private sectors together in unlikely collaborations to revitalize communities. Many of these lessons are presented in her book, Designing the City: A Guide for Advocates and Public Officials. Previously she was Deputy Director of the Massachusetts Government Land Bank and served as Director of Design and Development at the Massachusetts Council on the Arts and Humanities, receiving a Federal Design Achievement Award for her work.

ABOUT AMERICAN REPERTORY THEATER

The American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) at Harvard University is a leading force in the American theater, producing groundbreaking work that is driven by risk-taking and passionate inquiry. A.R.T. was founded in 1980 by Robert Brustein, who served as Artistic Director until 2002, when he was succeeded by Robert Woodruff. Diane Paulus began her tenure as Terrie and Bradley Bloom Artistic Director in 2008 and co-leads the theater in partnership with Executive Director Kelvin Dinkins, Jr., who began his tenure in 2022.